DARTMOUTH CLUB DE PETANQUE
Meetings: Wednesdays and Sundays, 10.30am, behind Stoke Fleming Village Hall
Number of members: 29
Cost: £30 a year
The objective: To score points by getting your boules (balls) closer to the target than your opponent. This may involve hitting your opponents’ boules out of the way!
History: The word, Pétanque, derives from Provençal French, “pés tanqués, meaning “feet together” (the required stance).
Keen member - 92-year-old Frank Gooderson says: “It is very sociable. I've made some good friends.”
Thirty years ago a small group of Francophiles came together in the corner of a Stoke Fleming pub with one common passion….to play the game of Pétanque.
And it is from those humble beginnings that the Dartmouth Club de Pétanque still thrives today.
Pétanque (also known as French boules) is a sociable game, and can be played by men and women, young and old, of all abilities. Although simple to learn, the sport can be challenging to perfect, allowing complete beginners to partner more accomplished players in harmony. Even the experienced players can still learn and improve.
The days have long gone when Pétanque was a game mainly played by fanatical Frenchmen and enjoyed only as a quaint diversion by the occasional holidaymaker on beaches. And it seems Pétanque could soon be an Olympic sport as the Confédération Mondiale des Sports de Boules has been lobbying the Olympic Committee to make it part of the summer Olympics in Paris in 2024.
Founded by the late Claire and Orson Stretton, the Dartmouth Club de Pétanque began its days at Deer Park before moving to Woodland Leisure Park and then to Norton Park. In 2014 the club was fortunate in obtaining a grant which enabled the construction of a custom built Pétanque terrain on the edge of the playing field behind the Stoke Fleming Village Hall. This provides a maximum of six pistes each measuring 13m x 3m, but generally only four are laid out depending on the numbers of members who turn up. And it seems the average Pétanque player is quite a hardy character as come rain or shine most of the local players show up ready to throw their ball into the gavel.
During the summer months the club holds home competitions, but play is generally sociable rather than intensely competitive. The club has hosted several visiting teams, including contingents from France and on occasions Dartmouth has actually beaten them, which members say is very satisfying!
Club membership numbers have varied over the years and while most are drawn from Dartmouth and the wider South Hams area, the club has attracted members from Torbay and even as far as Dawlish.
Players say they come every week not just for the game, but also for the friendship, the exercise and the “gentle competition”.
As the club enters its 31st year, Captain, Barry Coe, is keen to build on previous years achievements: “Like all clubs, we can always do with a few more members, and would love to have more people come and visit us.” If you want to try the sport head over to Stoke Fleming on a Wednesday or Sunday morning, the team looks forward to meeting you.
For further information visit: dartmouthpetanque.uk or contact Barry Coe on 07974128836
First published in By The Dart magazine March 2019